THE BEST NEW FICTION

Loki Melvin Burgess Coronet €24

In his first novel for grown-ups, Burgess, an award-winning YA author, channels his inner teenager to bring us an alternative take on Norse mythology. Told through the voice of Loki, the subversive, shapeshifting god of mischief and lies, this irreverent reimagining of Nordic creation myths strikes contemporary notes through its depiction of attitudes towards homosexuality and gender in the ancient world. Told with wit, verve and some decidedly adolescent scatological humour, it’s a book that exerts a curious charm. Simon Humphreys

Limberlost Robbie Arnott Atlantic Books €21

Ned West is a motherless boy, heavy with responsibility but dreaming of freedom and his own boat. His older brothers are away fighting in the Second World War and he is left with his taciturn father at their parched orchard, full of sharp feelings he can’t express. In this corner of rural Tasmania, being a man involves struggle, disappointment and skinning rabbits with your bare hands – but there is beauty too, and tenderness, and a sense that love might survive even the harshest climate. Katy Guest

Ghost Music An Yu Harvill Secker €21

Lonesome Beijing piano teacher Song Yan gave up a career as a concert pianist to get married. Three years on, her husband is still holding out on giving her a child, and a recurring dream finds her conversing with a giant mushroom. Then, someone starts sending her anonymous parcels of fungi… This playful, often surreal novel packs in plenty more mysteries as its heroine realises how little she knows her husband, and indeed her own self. It’s an elusive tale, steeped in atmosphere. Hephzibah Anderson

Desert Star Michael Connelly Orion €24

Harry Bosch is getting old. He’s still working cold cases for the LAPD, but his knees are dodgy and stairs are a challenge. None of that matters, though, when he gets the chance to reopen the Gallagher case: a whole family massacred in the Mojave Desert. The key suspect vanished 10 years previously, but surely someone must know where he’s gone. Another supremely well-engineered thriller from the modern master. Let’s hope that Harry’s knees hold out for a while longer. John Williams